Company attitudes toward social media sites vary. Some swing the doors wide open, allowing employees to tend to their Facebook farms and update Twitter statuses throughout the day. Others lock 'em down, keeping non-business site access to a minimum.

A recent study found that, in the United States, 77% of employees with Facebook accounts check in with the community from the office. And, the amount of time they're spending in this part of the online world is growing. In the United Kingdom, another study found that 57% log in regularly from work, costing their employers 40 minutes a day.

Philip Wicks, a consultant at Morse PLC, a technology research firm in London, "It isn't just something you can do for half an hour during a lunch break but all through the day and because of that, it has a huge impact because people aren't necessarily concentrating on what they should be doing during the day." He estimates that this translates to lost productivity of $2.25 billion a year.

It seems like the obvious move would be to block the sites, but William Beers of PricewaterhouseCoopers disagrees. "Instead of trying to shut it down, I think we should try to embrace these technologies, put in a nice policy that governs it and explain to users the risks related to it, provide some training and then see what business benefits we can have from it," he said.

Continue reading Social media at work: not just a yes/no question any more

Social media at work: not just a yes/no question any more originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 04 Nov 2009 16:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Despite crisis, New York still viewed as financial capital of the world

Despite crisis, New York still viewed as financial capital of the world originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 30 Oct 2009 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Manhattan, London, Tokyo office rents decline for first time since 2002

Manhattan, London, Tokyo office rents decline for first time since 2002 originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 25 Nov 2008 16:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Mittal is Britain's richest man who is spending about $16,000 a square foot for the detached residence on Palace Green, an extension of Kensington Palace Gardens, where several billionaires have their London homes. The $230 million price is 40% more than the previous record of $160 million for property in London's nearby Upper Phillimore Gardens.

Gottesman is fairly well off. His net worth has been estimated at $920 million. But if this sale goes through, he will be a billionaire.

Peter Cohan is President of Peter S. Cohan & Associates. He also teaches management at Babson College and edits The Cohan Letter.

Mittal buys $230 million London home originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 23 May 2008 14:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

When it comes to mergers and acquisitions (M&A), there has been little doubt that New York City is the center of the action. However, with the credit squeeze -- as well as the emergence of developing countries, such as India and China -- things are changing.

Take Deutsche Bank AG. This week, the firm announced the co-heads for its M&A group, Henrik Aslaksen and Brett Olsher. And they will operate out of London, according to a report from the Wall Street Journal [a paid publication].

Consider something else: the heads of M&A at Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) and Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) are also based in London.

There's definitely logic to this. After all, corporate clients want a global perspective and capability. And, for the most part, London has had a storied history in finance -- with strong ties to the rest Europe, the Middle East, and Asia.

As for Olsher and Aslaksen, they both have extensive global experience -- working on such high-profile deals as Tata Steel's purchase of Corus Group.

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including The Complete M&A Handbook and The Edgar Online Guide to Decoding Financial Statements. He also operates MergerBook.com.

NYC losing its M&A touch? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 13 Apr 2008 09:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Sensing inflation, ECB says interest rate cut unlikely

Sensing inflation, ECB says interest rate cut unlikely originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 19 Dec 2007 14:22:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

During the market disruptions of the past couple of months, we saw Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) fall from a high of $148 to a low of $118 ( man, what an opportunity that was!!). The stock is now back up to $141 and this may be your last chance to buy it here under $150. Why? A lot of catalysts are on the near term horizon.

Apple finishes its fiscal year in 11 days. The September 30 quarter and year-end will wrap up an exceptional year for Apple, yet many would argue that the best is yet to come. I expect the year finishing in 11 days to have final revenue numbers of $24 billion with earnings per share coming in at $3.75. iPhone revenues will be somewhat relevant, but that piece of the Apple story is JUST BEGINNING. As Apple exits fiscal year 2007, the more relevant story is still the overwhelming success of the iPod with the corresponding iTunes store, and of course, the newly revamped Mac computer. Mac is gaining market share in a fairly fluid market.

The iPhone production is ramping up. For the year (calendar year), Apple had planned to produce 3.6 million iPhone units. That number is now at 4.8 million units in planned production. European nations will be rolled out for iPhone availability beginning in the calendar fourth quarter with the UK and Germany getting ready for the onslaught.

Continue reading Apple (AAPL): Last chance to buy under $150?

Apple (AAPL): Last chance to buy under $150? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 19 Sep 2007 16:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Last week on BloggingStocks, I wrote about Playboy Enterprises, Inc. (NYSE: PLA)'s foray into social networking, and wondered whether it would help the company to launch itself out of the doldrums.

Michael Schneider of www.barrelomoney.com left a comment to let me know that he thinks the company is already launching itself out of the doldrums:

Playboy, in our view has already started a substantial turnaround that has set the company of the right course. they have added many new sources of revenue and have strengthened the brand. Recent results are telling as many print media companies are floundering and competitors like New frontier turned in weak results.

But the stock isn't showing evidence of this turnaround -- which is good. If the company really is turning itself around, the stock could present an opportunity for investors.

Now we have the latest evidence of Playboy moving in a new direction: It's opening a store in London, establishing a presence that has been missing there for the past 25 years. Playboy is also looking at opening a casino in London.

There's been a lot of evidence lately that Playboy is at least trying to reinvent itself and become relevant again. If you think it has a chance, you may want to look at buying the stock.

Playboy (PLA) returns to London -- Is the stock making a comeback too? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 27 Aug 2007 17:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

When I worked in Chicago's Loop, I used to see the traders everywhere, with their brightly colored jackets and their enormous badges. Whether in their smoking circles, crowded into the restaurants and bars, or simply scurrying from one place to another, there was a air of frenetic energy about them, and though sometimes looking weary, they always seemed to be having a good time.

Well, as it turns out, Chicago, home of the championship Bulls and Bears, is also the top trading city in the world, according to a survey of traders by Trader Monthly. London, New York, Dubai, and Miami rounded out the top five.

The two largest U.S. futures marts and the largest U.S. options exchange can be found in the Windy City. Trading is "in the city's blood," said the magazine. Just this past week the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (NYSE: CME) had its second-highest volume trading day ever.

Trader Monthly rated cities on several factors, including trading infrastructure, taxes, access to capital, weather, nightlife, and time zone. Especially popular with traders was the real estate market; Chicago is infinitely more affordable than London or New York, the next two runners up.

Chicago is tops with traders originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 10 Jun 2007 10:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Money Shots: Inside the $2 million apartment originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 27 Feb 2007 14:37:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.